Acupuncture Improves White Matter Perfusion and Integrity in Rat Model of Vascular Dementia: An MRI-Based Imaging Study

Abstract

White matter lesions induced by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion are associated with cognitive impairment in vascular dementia (VaD). Previous studies have shown that acupuncture can ameliorate the cognitive deficits of individuals with VaD. However, the neuroimaging mechanisms of acupuncture on white matter perfusion and integrity remain elusive. In this study, the VaD model was induced by bilateral common carotid arteries occlusion (BCCAO) in rats. Novel object recognition task and Morris water maze were performed to evaluate short-term memory and spatial learning and memory. Arterial spin labeling and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were used to measure the cerebral blood flow (CBF) and the white matter integrity. Pathological examinations detected the myelin loss and concomitant neuroinflammation. The results demonstrate that BCCAO rats with reduced CBF exhibited worse performance and altered DTI parameters, including decreased fractional anisotropy, increased radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity in white matter regions. Acupuncture ameliorated cognitive impairment, increased CBF, and protected the myelin sheath integrity but not the axons of BCCAO rats. These protective effects of acupuncture on white matter were significantly correlated with improved CBF. Pathological examination confirmed that the loss of myelin basic protein and microglial accumulation associated IL-1β and IL-6 production were attenuated by acupuncture treatment. Our findings suggest that acupuncture protects cognitive function of BCCAO rats by improving white matter perfusion and integrity.

Efficacy of acupuncture in animal models of vascular dementia: A systematic review and network meta-analysis

“…With the deepening of animal studies, a large amount of evidences showed that acupuncture can effectively treat cognitive dysfunction in animals through multiple targets or pathways (Ye et al, 2017a ). Ma et al ( 2020 ) conducted an Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)imaging-based acupuncture study, which found that the combination of GV20 + ST36 significantly attenuated the loss of myelin basic proteins and obviously reduced Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and Ionized calcium bindingadaptor molecule-1 (Iba-1) by improving the perfusion and integrity of white matter. A quantitative proteomic study Isobaric Tags for Relative and Absolute Quantitation (iTRAQ) performed by Yang et al ( 2018a ) showed that most Differentially Expressed Proteins (DEPs) were associated with oxidative stress, apoptosis, and synaptic function, additionally, the proteins associated with acupuncture effects were also significantly involved in these three cellular processes.…”

Acupuncture Treatment is Associated with Reduced Dementia Risk in Patients with Migraine: A Propensity-Score–Matched Cohort Study of Real-World Data

“… 8 , 40 Acupuncture at the Baihui (GV20) and Zusanli (ST36) points has been found to prevent cognitive function decline in rat models of vascular dementia by ameliorating white matter perfusion and maintaining its integrity. 47 In addition, acupuncture at the Yanglingquan (GB34) point was found to potentially enhance the communication between cortices with damaged white matter tracts in patients with ischemic stroke. 48 Therefore, we infer that acupuncture modulates these alterations of white matter, thereby preventing the development of dementia.…”

Electroacupuncture promotes remyelination and alleviates cognitive deficit via promoting OPC differentiation in a rat model of subarachnoid hemorrhage

“…Therefore, improving the CBF is a promising therapeutic method for the treatment of white matter injury. Ma et al discovered that acupuncture increased the CBF, and preserved the myelin integrity without in uencing the axons in a rat model of vascular dementia [44]. In a clinic trial, EA treatment increased CBF and improved the outcome of SAH patients through alleviating vasospasm [7].…”